Cheats and Walkthroughs

Review

Cheats and Walkthroughs

Cheats and Walkthroughs

Infinity Ward and DICE both released downloadable content packs for their respective military shooters yesterday. Call of Duty: Modern Warfare 2’s Stimulus Package hit Xbox 360, while Battlefield: Bad Company 2’s VIP Map Pack released for PC, PlayStation 3 and Xbox 360. The biggest difference between the two batches of DLC? Price.

While the MW2 Stimulus Package cost 1200 Microsoft Points ($15), DICE released their DLC for free (unless you buy Bad Company 2 used in which case you have to throw down $15 to buy a VIP code to download the DLC). Ultimately, the pricing decision is the publisher’s call; in this case, EA and Activision. But as DICE senior producer Patrick Bach told Xbox World 360 magazine (via Computer and Videogames), the free DLC approach initially came from DICE.

“We don’t ever want to charge for our maps and insisted to EA that this attitude was crucial when it came to keeping our community happy and playing together,” said Bach.

DICE has said they have more DLC plans in the works, and, clearly, if they have their way, it will continue to be free. However, despite Bach’s insistence that “We’re owned by EA but we’re still very much DICE,” if EA calls for a price tag for DLC, it’s hard to imagine DICE really being able to do anything about it. Thankfully, DICE has the fans love on their side, and that is always the most desirable shield to have when it comes to dealing with major publishers eyeing that bottom line.

If DICE decided to charge for Bad Company 2 DLC, what would you be willing to pay for it? Do you think the MW2 DLC is overpriced or worth every cent?